Key West needs more and better care facilities for its senior citizens. This blog will discuss ways to do so. The grandiose give-away promoted by the "Florida Keys Assisted Care Coalition" is not the best way. We can do much better.

Monday, December 3, 2007

(Since I am probably not going to be able to make it to tomorrow night's Key West City Commission meeting, I sent the following letter to the Citry Clerk to be read into the record during the discussion of "Resolution A", Mayor McPhearson's move to establish a role for the FKACC in defining the assisted living project.)

To the City Clerk:

Pursuant to Agenda item "(a)" of the Key West City Commissionmeeting of Tuesday, Deember 4, 2007, please read the commentsbelow into the record. Thank you.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~From: David Lybrand, Key West, FloridaTo: The members of the Key West City Commission

There is a major imbalance between affordable assisted carefacilities verses expensive NON-assisted care retirementhousing in the current FKACC plan. It is important that theresolution assigning them as overseers of the assisted livingfacility be amended before passage by the commission.

The current FKACC proposal provides free land subsidies tothe wealthy who wish to get into a nice NON-ASSISTED retirementhome at the waterfront. In contrast, the plan is very light onproviding actual affordable assisted care facilities.

It includes 87 expensive retirement homes -- some costingover one million dollars -- for people who can still driveand work and live without assistance. But it only provides 20affordable rooms for those actually needing assisted care.The other 20 assisted care rooms are planned to be MARKET RATE,which few average Key Westers would be able to afford.

This imbalance must be corrected in the RFP process. I urgethe commission to amend the resolution to add language directingthe FKACC to correct their proposal to include MORE affordableassisted living facilities, and LESS expensive NON-assistedretirement homes.

With over 5 free acres to work with, there's no excuse foronly providing our average citizenry with 20 more affordableassisted rooms. Please make sure that the FKACC understands this.Thank you.